updated 01:45 pm EST, Fri January 5, 2007

Xbox 360 with HDMI

A second revision of the Xbox 360 will see a major upgrade to the console's media features, according to a photo obtained by Engadget. The update, codenamed "Zephyr," should bring the crucial addition of an HDMI output, a connector necessary to ensure that later copy-protected HD DVD movies can display at their full resolution on newer HDTV sets. The system will also see its first increase in storage, according to the report: the new model will ship with a 120GB hard drive, there in part to provide additional storage for Microsoft's recently opened Xbox Live movie store. This extra capacity may be optional, the site notes.

While no release date has been given as part of the leak, Microsoft has already confirmed that it will ship refreshed Xbox 360s in mid-2007 using a cooler, 65-nanometer version of the three-core CPU at the heart of the system. Sources suggest that all three improvements may be scheduled to appear simultaneously.